The Drive
by agirlnamedraven
Summary: The car ride to Art's house... From Dimitri's POV. Enjoy!


**A/N: I've kind of hit a writer's block for my originals, so I decided to go back to my roots. Here's the car ride scene from Dimitri's POV. I do not own VA, FB, or SK. Enjoy!  
**

Rose was late, again. But unlike when she was late for my practices, this could be bad. We needed to leave within the next five minutes in order to get there in the time frame we were scheduled. I swore under my breath in Russian. She needed to get here, now.

She came running up to the SUV and skidded to a stop beside me. It was amazing how just being around her could change my moods. I rearranged my amused expression into one of annoyance.

"I know, I know, sorry I'm late." She huffed out. The snow started to swirl down past us. Some of it was coming out of the trees, while other flakes were freshly formed. Snow wouldn't be a problem, especially with my vision.

Rose said not a word, but I could see the tension build. She was worried about the Qualifier, just as any aspiring guardian should be. I let her collect her thoughts for a minute. Staring at the falling snow, I could see her visibly relax. Her shoulders fell slightly; her breathing regulated itself.

"Who else is going?" she asked, looking around as if she suspected other guardians to pop out at any second.

"Just you and me." I said, shrugging. They couldn't afford to send any more than one guardian, and with her background, most people figured I'd be the best one to handle a Hathaway meltdown, if one was to occur.

"How far away is it?" was the next question. She seemed hopeful for something. I assumed she was hoping for a long trip, one that would keep her out of school for a while. It wasn't that far away.

"Five hours." Was my reply.

"Oh." She seemed kind of disappointed. Was it too long? Or was it too short?

Looking at my watch, I ushered her into the car and we drove off, just her and me.

Despite being a fully trained guardian, temptation was hard to resist. The memory of the lust spell still hung around my mind, and I knew she still thought of it. We drove in silence for a while, and then I turned on my music to try and break the spell that hung in the car. It worked.

I knew she was worried. It wasn't uncommon. Almost all of the novices passed this test. Only a few failed, and I was sure that Rose wouldn't be one of them. I had known since the moment I first saw her that she was dedicated. The way she threw herself at me, knowing full well she couldn't come close to taking me down, just to protect Lissa, that showed commitment. That showed dedication. That showed love.

"Don't they usually come to the Academy?" her voice broke through the music. "I mean, I'm all for the field trip, but why are we going to them?" She was right. They usually came to the Academy, three or four of the top guardians. They met with each novice individually and asked him or her questions. Based on the responses, a few would be quietly sent to other areas of work, being deemed unfit for being a guardian.

"Actually, you're just going to a _him,_ not a _them_. Since this is a special trip, and he's doing us the favor, we're the ones making the trip." I explained.

"Who is he?" she asked, a small quaver in her voice. She did a good job of hiding her nervousness, but I could see right through it.

"Arthur Schoenberg."

"What?" she squeaked. Her head snapped toward me. I held in a small chuckle. It wasn't a laughing matter. Art was a well known guardian. He was one of the best in the history of guardians, killing many Strigoi and being the head of the Guardians Council. He and I had fun training together when I was younger. He taught me a lot.

"Wasn't… wasn't there anyone else available?" Again, I held in a small chuckle. Rose was showing a side I rarely ever saw: one of fear. She was afraid.

"You'll be fine. Besides, if Art approves of you, that's a great recommendation to have on your record."

The car became silent, besides the music playing. It was some of my favorite stuff from the 1980's. It reminded me of my home back in Russia, when we'd all gather around the radio and sing along.

Rose looked uncomfortable. Knowing she was still worrying about the Qualifier, and the thought that Art might not approve of her, I tried to assuage her fears. "You'll be fine. The good in your record outweighs the bad." Yes, all of the times she had caused trouble in the Academy, and the incident where she and Lissa were on the run for two years weighed heavily on her record. But so did the fact that she had brought Lissa back unharmed. She had played a pivotal role in bringing back Lissa during the whole Victor fiasco, and Art had heard about it. I knew, because he had called me, asking about Rose. The whole reason we were going to him was because he asked to be the examiner.

Her eyes slipped over to look at me. She made a thorough sweep of me, and I felt the feelings I had for her start to stir up.

"Thanks, Coach" she said, voice light and teasing. She had many nicknames for me, including coach, cowboy, comrade, and even her "Russian jailer" although I was pretty sure she didn't feel that way about me now.

"I'm here to help." I said in the same tone she had used. Being alone, apart from her, I could begin to relax. There weren't many people whom I trusted enough to allow myself to relax around. She was one of the rare exceptions. I was safe with her, as long as we both kept our feelings in check.

"You know what would really help?" she asked, not looking at me.

"Hmm?" I asked, keeping my eyes on the road. I couldn't look at her without laughing some. We made the oddest pair, that was for sure.

"If you turned off this crap music and put on something that came out after the Berlin Wall went down."

That did it. A laugh escaped, and I didn't mind. "Your worst class is history, yet somehow, you know everything about Eastern Europe."

"Hey, gotta have material for my jokes, Comrade." She said with a smile.

I turned the radio dial to another of my favorite stations. I had them memorized from Washington state all the way to Ohio. A old time country song was playing. It was Johnny Cash's "Hurt." One of my theme songs.

"Hey! This wasn't what I had in mind." She ejaculated. I had to hold another laugh in.

"Pick. It's one or the other."

Sighing, she admitted defeat by saying, "Go back to the 1980's stuff." I knew I'd win. She sank back into her seat and stared out the window.


End file.
